Lions Open NJCAA Women’s Tournament With Win Over Murray State
(FILE) Kameron Sanders heads toward the basket in the Lions ACCC Championship game.
The Wallace State women’s basketball team opened the 2025 NJCAA Women’s National Tournament
with a 62-46 win over Murray State College (Okla.).
“I was so proud of our team for the toughness and grit they played with throughout the game. I think once our nerves calmed down, we were able to settle in on offense and our defense was able to control the game,” coach Joseph Simmons said. “To hold Murray State to 46 points, when they average 80 per game, shows how focused our team was on their assignments and making it difficult on them to score. We are excited to move on to the Sweet 16, and to continue our season.”
It took almost two minutes for someone to score as defenses dominated the early going.
Murray State got on the board first to take a 2-0 lead with 8:04 remaining in the
quarter. Wallace State tied the game with 6:39 remaining when Kameron Sanders hit
two free throws.
The Lions first lead came with 6:02 left in the first when Kallie Tinker hit a 3-pointer
off an assist from Idaysia Mercer. After a Murray State 3-pointer to take a 7-5 lead,
Sinaya Gibson hit a layup off a feed from Mercer to tie the game at 7-7. After a Murray
State layup, giving them a 9-7 lead, Mercer hit a 3-pointer off an assist from Sanders
to give the Lions a 10-9 lead with 3:39 remaining.
After another Murray State 3-pointer, giving them a 12-10 lead, Gibson hit a layup
to tie the game at 12-12 with 1:48 left in the first. Sanders hit a free throw with
1:04 left to give Wallace a 13-12 lead. Murray State closed the quarter with a layup
to take a 14-13 lead into the second quarter.
The teams continued to battle back-and-forth over the first five minutes of the second
quarter with the score deadlocked at 18-18.
The Lions broke open the tight game with an 11-2 run over the final 4:22 of the first
half. 3-pointers from Mercer and Sanders helped to fuel the run. Wallace outscored
Murray State 16-6 in the second quarter to take a 29-20 lead into halftime.
The teams traded baskets for the first five minutes of the third quarter with the
Lions holding a 38-26 advantage following a Sanders layup with 5:01 remaining in the
third quarter. After Murray State cut the Wallace State lead to 38-30, the Lions closed
the quarter with a 10-3 run to take a 48-33 lead into the final quarter.
Wallace State took their largest lead of the game with 4:51 remaining when Mercer
hit a layup to give the Lions a 56-35 lead. The closest that Murray State would get
the rest of the game was 13 points at 59-46 with 1:23 remaining. Gibson closed out
the scoring with a layup with 13 seconds remaining to give Wallace the 62-46 win.
Wallace State shot 44 percent for the game, including 36.8 percent from three, while
holding Murray State to 34.8 percent from the field and 31.6% from 3. The Lions outrebounded
Murray State 32-22, while forcing 13 Murray State turnovers. Wallace outscored Murray
State 28-16 in the paint.
Sanders led Wallace State (29-4) with 20 points, eight rebounds, two assists and a
steal. Mercer added 17 points, five assists, two rebounds and a steal, while Gibson
had 13 points and four rebounds. Tinker finished with nine points, two rebounds and
a steal, while Nylaa Fuller had three points, a game-high 12 rebounds, two assists,
two steals and a block.
Up Next
The Lions will meet the Northwest Florida State College Raiders in the second round
on Thursday at 5:45 pm. The Raiders are the #3 seed with a record of 28-3. The game
can be viewed on ESPN+.
Media Contact
- Kristen Holmes
- Vice President for Students and Chief Marketing Officer
- 256-352-8233
- kristen.holmes@wallacestate.edu
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